MRI Report Expects Market to Reach $4 Billion by 2010

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems have transformed into one of the best imaging modalities for a variety of organs and structures with the development of open systems. These developments have allowed MRI to become a $3.5 billion industry worldwide, and a new study suggests that the market will continue to increase.
According to a new study from Kalorama Information in New York, NY, the market will hit $4 billion by 2010. The anticipated increase is due to the wide range of uses of the modality including interventional MRI for brain surgery and use for MRI in diffusion imaging to diagnose strokes and other brain injuries.
“With the introduction of whole-body MRI, which offers better sensitivity and higher specificity in detecting bone metastasis, and black-blood MRI, which produces an image of the artery where blood appears black as opposed to typical MRI scans where blood appears bright, we’re moving into the next phase of MRI diagnostic capabilities,” noted Joseph Constance, the report’s author. “While these and other advanced technologies come with a high price tag, the benefits to worldwide health far exceed the costs which in time will lessen as the technologies are refined.”